World and history · hangman category
Greek Mythology Hangman Words
Gods, heroes, monsters and places from Greek myth as hangman words, from Zeus to the labyrinth. Play online or print a sheet with an answer key.
Read the word list
The myths of ancient Greece are a favorite in grades three to eight, partly because the stories are vivid and partly because so many English words come from them. This list uses the Greek names throughout, so you will find Heracles rather than Hercules, which is the Roman form. Gods, heroes, creatures, objects and places are all included, and bloodier episodes are left out.
Zeus, Hera, Eros and Pan give beginners something quick. Athena, Apollo, Pegasus and Medusa are the names most children already know. The hard end includes Persephone, Hephaestus, Daedalus and Prometheus, which are long and full of unusual letter pairs such as ph and ae, and Poseidon and Dionysus, which most students can say but few can spell. Nymph has no ordinary vowel at all, so it lasts longer than its size suggests.
76 entries. Our solver needed 2.3 wrong guesses on average: 31 easy, 37 medium and 8 hard. The toughest is pan (9 misses), the quickest artemis (0).
- zeus Hard · 7
- hera Medium · 4
- eros Medium · 2
- pan Hard · 9
- nike Medium · 4
- eos Easy · 1
- atlas Medium · 3
- titan Medium · 3
- nymph Hard · 5
- satyr Easy · 1
- siren Easy · 1
- hydra Medium · 4
- lyre Hard · 5
- nectar Easy · 1
- oracle Medium · 2
- muses Medium · 2
- apollo Medium · 2
- athena Easy · 1
- hermes Easy · 1
- artemis Easy · 0
- demeter Easy · 0
- dionysus Easy · 1
- poseidon Medium · 2
- aphrodite Easy · 0
- hestia Medium · 3
- hephaestus Easy · 1
- helios Medium · 2
- selene Easy · 1
- persephone Easy · 0
- heracles Medium · 2
- perseus Easy · 0
- theseus Easy · 1
- odysseus Easy · 0
- achilles Easy · 1
- jason Medium · 2
- orpheus Easy · 1
- pandora Medium · 2
- prometheus Easy · 0
- medusa Hard · 5
- pegasus Easy · 1
- minotaur Medium · 2
- centaur Easy · 1
- cyclops Medium · 4
- phoenix Medium · 2
- griffin Medium · 2
- chimera Medium · 3
- cerberus Medium · 2
- olympus Medium · 3
- delphi Medium · 2
- athens Medium · 2
- sparta Medium · 2
- ithaca Easy · 1
- crete Easy · 1
- labyrinth Medium · 2
- ambrosia Easy · 1
- argonauts Medium · 2
- trident Easy · 1
- odyssey Easy · 1
- iliad Medium · 2
- narcissus Easy · 1
- echo Medium · 4
- midas Medium · 4
- icarus Medium · 2
- daedalus Medium · 3
- ariadne Easy · 0
- atalanta Medium · 2
- mount olympus Medium · 3
- golden fleece Medium · 3
- pandora's box Hard · 8
- trojan horse Easy · 0
- winged horse Medium · 2
- twelve labors Easy · 0
- king midas Hard · 9
- sea nymph Hard · 8
- wooden horse Easy · 1
- mount parnassus Medium · 4
Words worth a closer look
- zeusFour letters, with a z that is rare in English. King of the Olympian gods in Greek myth, and an easy first answer for beginners who guess e and u.
- heraclesThe Greek name of the hero the Romans called Hercules. He is known for completing twelve labors, and both spellings are used in English books.
- poseidonGod of the sea in Greek myth, usually shown with a trident. Two o's, an e and an i in eight letters mean the vowels fall early.
- minotaurA creature with a bull's head and a man's body, kept in the labyrinth on Crete, which the craftsman Daedalus designed in the myth.
- cyclopsFrom Greek words meaning round eye. The y and the single o are the only vowels, and the y is rarely a first guess.
- nymphSpirits of nature in Greek myth, tied to rivers, trees and mountains. The only vowel is the y, so it is a strong pick for players who start with a, e and i.
- odysseusHero of the Odyssey, called Ulysses by the Romans. It has a double s in the middle and the y is easy to leave out when spelling.
- pandora's boxPandora opens a jar in the story, though it became a box in later retellings. The apostrophe is shown, so the s after it is easy to place.
Using this list in class
This list suits a mythology unit in upper elementary and middle school. After solving a word, the player gives one fact about the god or creature, or the class votes on whether it is a god, hero, monster or place. That sorts the list into categories and checks understanding.
Language arts teachers can link the answers to English: atlas, echo, narcissus, siren, titan and labyrinth all appear in ordinary writing. Ask students to find the myth behind one of them. For a creative task, students can invent a new creature and write the name and a one line description to use as the next hangman answer.
Print a Greek Mythology Hangman worksheet
Eight puzzles on one US Letter page, with a clue, letter blanks, an empty frame to draw in, an alphabet strip to cross off and circles to count misses. Page two is the answer key.
Need another sheet?
Draw eight different words from this list, right here. Same layout, new answer key.
Keep going
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